Friday, December 21, 2012

Yunus Centre and CG Foundation join hands to form a Social Business Fund

CG
Foundation — a CSR initiative of Chaudhary Group — signed an agreement with the
Yunus Centre today to set up a Social Business Fund (SBF).

Nobel
Laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus and chairman of Chaudhary Group Binod Chaudhary
signed the agreement to establish a new joint venture — Social Business Fund
(SBF) — and undertake collaborative activities in Nepal to help alleviate
poverty through various social business endeavors, on behalf of their
respective institutions.

According to
the agreement, Chaudhary Group (CG) will organise the finances to create a
Social Business Fund (SBF), while Yunus Center will provide the needed
technical support. The Social Business Fund will finance social business
ventures to help improve lives of the people in Nepal.

The Social
Business Fund will also abide by fundamental principles of social business
postulated by Prof Muhammad Yunus.

According to
principles, the business objective will be to overcome poverty or one or more
problem like education, health, technology access and environment, which
threaten people and society: not profit maximization; financial and economic
sustainability; investors get back their investment amount only and they cannot
claim dividend; when investment amount is paid back, company profit stays with
their company for expansion and improvement; environmentally conscious;
workforce get market wage with better working conditions and do it with joy.

The
CG Foundation established by the Chaudhary Group to contribute to the society
in need of health care and education, and to promote art, culture and sports in
Nepal endeavors to conduct all its businesses in a socially and environmentally
responsible manner, said Chaudhary after signing the agreement. “It believes in
the relationships it builds with its employees, customers, partners and the
community at large. CG has been actively investing in the welfare of the community
through its various Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) efforts for over two
decades.”